Director, Mechanical Engineering: Autonomous Factory Tech

Hadrian Automation; Torrance (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Relocation support

Flexible vacation policy

401k

Insurance plans

Job summary

Hadrian in Torrance, CA seeks a veteran leader to build and guide the mechanical engineering team designing factory automation equipment. You will mentor engineers, set standards, and push boundaries with AI-enabled workflows.

You'll own design from concept to production, decide what to build in-house or buy, manage budgets, and partner with controls, software, and operations to scale high‑volume manufacturing.

Qualifications

• 12+ years designing automation equipment, test equipment or production machinery.
• Experience leading mechanical engineers.
• Proven record delivering automation equipment from concept through commissioning.
• Strong mechanical design skills: mechanisms, fixtures, end-of-arm tooling, tolerance stacks, actuator sizing, machine safety.
• Growing engineers and earning the trust of technicians/operators who build and run your designs.
• Use AI and other new tools in your engineering workflow and push your team to try new ways of working.

Responsibilities

• Build, lead and grow the mechanical engineering team that designs Hadrian's automation equipment: hiring bar, leveling, mentoring and career growth.
• Deliver machines, fixtures, end-of-arm tooling and material handling from concept through build, commissioning and production run-in, and own how they perform on the floor.
• Set design standards and run design reviews covering CAD, drawings, GD&T, design for manufacture and assembly, and machine safety, so each new factory builds on the last.
• Stay hands-on: review designs, work through fixtures, mechanisms and cell layouts with your engineers, and make the hard technical calls.
• Decide what to design in house and what to buy, plan the equipment budget, and hold machine builders, vendors and integrators to the standard.
• Partner closely with controls, software, manufacturing and factory operations, and bring new tools, including AI, into how the team designs.

Skills

Mechanical design

Leadership

Automation equipment

AI in engineering

Systems integration

Tools

CAD

GD&T

DFM

Job description

Hadrian in Torrance, CA seeks a veteran leader to build and guide the mechanical engineering team designing factory automation equipment. You will mentor engineers, set standards, and push boundaries with AI-enabled workflows.

You'll own design from concept to production, decide what to build in-house or buy, manage budgets, and partner with controls, software, and operations to scale high‑volume manufacturing.